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Thrilling victory for UML

MANCHESTER, N.H. -- It had all of the makings for a great one. But who imagined it would be this great?

UMass Lowell and Saint Anselm took the court at Stoutenburgh Gym with identical records Tuesday night, a location notoriously unkind to the River Hawks. Staying true to form, it was by no means easy this time.

Every last ounce of the 40 minutes was needed to decide a winner, but UMass Lowell went home happy after a 91-88 Northeast-10 win in front of 602 loud spectators.

The River Hawks hadn't won at St. A's since 2007.

The energy-filled game saw 17 lead changes and 11 ties. UML sophomore guard Chad Holley delivered the biggest of shots when he banked a cold-blooded 3-pointer from two feet behind the line to give the River Hawks an 86-84 lead with 49 seconds left.

UML never lost the advantage, as Holley, who finished with 22 points (7-for-10, 5-for-6 on threes) in his best game as a River Hawk, added two big free throws with 34 seconds left for an 88-84 lead. A potential game-tying three at the buzzer was missed by Roy Mabrey (15 points).

"I had no problem with that three by Chad. I never tell our guys to shy away from big shots. When you play that hard, you earn the respect of the coaches and the players," said UML head coach Greg Herenda. "I think the Basketball Gods were with us.

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"That was about blood, sweat and tears. The guys came out really strong."

Standings-wise, it was a huge as well. UMass Lowell improved to 6-1 (4-1 NE-10), while the Hawks dropped to 5-2 (3-2).

Holley had been bothered by a lower back injury, so his giant effort was a pleasant surprise and a sign that he is nearing 100 percent. UML's other two standouts were not so surprising.

Junior guard Akeem Williams led all scorers with 31 points to go with five rebounds and one brilliant block on a breakaway layup attempt by Mabrey. Junior forward Antonio Bivins added 22 points, nine rebounds and a soaring two-handed dunk.

The UML trio combined for 75 points, while St. A's had five players in double figures led by freshman forward Mike McCahey's 18.

The first half was good. The second half was better.

The Hawks erased UML's lead at the half (42-39) and broke out to a 62-56 lead with 11:48 left after a tip-in by Mabrey. But McDonnell's aforementioned dunk and a three by Holley made it 62-61 with 11:15 left. From there a seemingly endless supply of great individual efforts ensued.

Saint Anselm got a breakaway dunk from forward Chris Santo to match Bivins' slam. McCahey and Williams traded threes later in the half and it was 72-70 St. A's with 7:15 left.

Back-and-forth we went until it looked like the host Hawks seized momentum with an 80-76 lead with 2:43 left. But a personal 5-0 run by Williams answered the call for UML, giving the visitors an 81-80 lead with 1:50 left. A Dino Mallios (11 points, six assists) layup, gave the Hawks back the lead, then a Williams jumper gave it back to UML. A layup by Mabrey with 1:03 remaining gave St. A's its last lead at 84-83.

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